State of the Death with Dignity Movement in 2018

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This article has been adapted from a 4th of July email communication to Death with Dignity’s constituents.

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As an American, I believe the greatest human freedom is to live and die according to our own desires and beliefs. Death with dignity provides terminally ill Americans an opportunity to decide how they die, allowing them to pursue happiness all the way to the end of life.

Every Independence Day, after most state legislatures adjourn for the summer, I take stock of our progress in the death with dignity movement.

This Year’s Progress

In November, we will mark 10 years since Washington voters approved the Death with Dignity Act.

After we successfully defended the Oregon law from legal challenges, the nation’s second assisted dying law launched our movement’s second decade, in which we started bringing the law as a model to other states, including Vermont.

We began the third decade by successfully advancing this legislation in California and other jurisdictions, and seeing half the country’s state legislatures take up the issue.[1]

Today the state of the death with dignity movement is strong:

We are making progress. In April we added Hawaii to the ranks of states with aid-in-dying statutes; we defended the D.C. law from a congressional attack; and 21 additional state legislatures considered death with dignity bills. See more below.

Public support remains high. Seven in ten Americans support death with dignity. The latest Gallup poll has shown 72 percent of Americans support the legal right of terminally ill people to die.[2]

At the same time, death with dignity is under attack. Our religiously-motivated opponents are gaining ground across the country. Congress is again considering a repeal of the D.C. Death with Dignity Act, and in California a district judge temporarily overturned the End of Life Option Act. We are fighting on both fronts.

Your Support Matters

None of our victories are possible without your involvement. Our movement is strong only thanks to you.

After nearly two years of providing peace of mind to dying Californians, the End of Life Option Act was overturned in court. An appellate court stayed the cruel ruling, reinstating the Act, but patients and physicians remain in a state of uncertainty.

Though none of these bills advanced, I am not discouraged, on the contrary. In most of these states, bills returned for consideration after previous attempts; Indiana even saw its first aid in dying proposal in history.

Death with dignity is squarely and increasingly on the legislative agenda around the country.

Advocacy

Recognizing that effective local leadership is a key factor in the successful passage of death with dignity legislation, last year we formed the Dignity 50 State Leadership Incubator, a program through which we invest in the work of community leaders and advocates on the local level.

The goal of the Incubator is to provide information, resources, and expertise to help grow local organizations which can participate in effective campaigns and lead statewide advocacy efforts.

Get in touch if you’d like to be a part of this effort.[3]

November Election

Our victories take place on the local level. After the November mid-term election, next year’s legislative session will see many new lawmakers enter the political arena. As you decide who will get your vote, I encourage you to ask candidates their stance on assisted dying.

Life and Liberty

On the one hand, we’ve been making unprecedented progress in ensuring terminally ill Americans can die the way they want. Thanks to you, Death with Dignity National Center is better positioned for future success than ever.

On the other hand, opponents of death with dignity have been emboldened to try to ban aid in dying nationwide and even managed to temporarily thwart the California law. They are gaining traction and fighting death with dignity legislation on all fronts. Their national strategy is to stop our movement by preventing new legislation from passing, impeding implementation, and overturning existing statutes.

As we fight to stop them, I am reminded of something Victor Hugo once wrote:

There is one thing stronger than all the armies of the world, and that is an idea whose time has come.

—Victor Hugo

I’m not going to sugarcoat it: even though death with dignity’s time has come, success is not going to be easy and there will always be those who want to tell Americans how to die.

It is only if we continue to work together that we will succeed in ensuring all Americans have the right to die with dignity. Thank you for being part of the team.

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3 Comments.

Penny Burkey

July 7, 2018 at 6:21 pm

I am not a stranger to end of life suffering.. I have taken care of my son, my father, and my mother. Sadly, it took each of them months to die. While aid in dying may not have been their choice, I want to have that choice for myself. I know first hand the physical, emotional, and financial strain that is put upon the caregiver. I WILL NOT put this burden on my loved ones. Please make it possible for me to die with dignity and not need to resort to another undignified way to spare my family should I become stricken with a terminal illness.

john hess

August 3, 2018 at 7:45 am

I know exactly what the lady above has gone thru in caring for her family – I have done the same thing for 18 family, friends and ex-lovers caring for then burying them over these last 21 years! many would gladly have chosen this end of life option if it had been available here in Fla. – from cancers to HIV+ ailments that tore thru their bodies, I sadly had to watch as they suffered and I silently cried for them! Now I am 71, alone with many illnesses that by themselves are not fatal, but combined have disabled me to the point where I am seriously considering the death with dignity solution! I had planned to go to Hawaii, but the law doesn’t take effect till next year and I don’t know if I can wait that long- however I will try (too bad I can’t afford to live their till the law takes effect – anyone know of a cheap way to live there – hostel, caring friends of D-D, or even camping?)